Gaming machines that provide players awards in primary or base games are well known. These gaming machines generally require a player to place a wager to activate a play of the primary game. For many of these gaming machines, any award provided to a player for a wagered-on play of a primary game is based on the player obtaining a winning symbol or a winning symbol combination and on an amount of the wager (e.g., the higher the amount of the wager, the higher the award). Winning symbols or winning symbol combinations that are less likely to occur typically result in higher awards being provided when they do occur.
For such known gaming machines, an amount of a wager placed on a primary game by a player may vary. For instance, a gaming machine may enable the player to wager a minimum number of credits, such as one credit (e.g., one cent, nickel, dime, quarter, or dollar), up to a maximum quantity of credits, such as five credits. The gaming machine may enable the player to place this wager a single time or multiple times for a single play of the primary game. For instance, a gaming machine configured to operate a slot game may have one or more paylines, and the gaming machine may enable a player to place a wager on each if the paylines for a single play of the slot game. Thus, it is known that a gaming machine, such as one configured to operate a slot game, may enable players to place wagers of substantially different amounts on each play of a primary game. For example, the amounts of the wagers may range from one credit up to 125 credits (e.g., five credits on each of twenty-five separate paylines). This is also true for other wagering games, such as video draw poker, in which players can place wagers of one or more credits on each hand, and in which multiple hands can be played simultaneously. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that different players play at substantially different wager amounts or levels and substantially different rates of play.
Various slot games include a plurality of reels, at least one of which includes a plurality of wild symbols positioned adjacent to one another on the reel to form a stack of wild symbols on the reel. During a play of one of these slot games, the reels are spun and one or more of the wild symbols of the stack of wild symbols may be generated and displayed as a result of the spin of the reels. That is, following a spin of the reels: (a) at least one, but less than all, of the wild symbols of the stack of wild symbols may be generated and displayed; (b) all of the wild symbols of the stack of wild symbols may be generated and displayed; or (c) none of the wild symbols of the stack of wild symbols may be generated and displayed. The fact that a portion, but less than all, of the stack of wild symbols may be generated and displayed following a spin of the reels may frustrate and detract from the gaming experience of certain players, especially those who enjoy large amounts of action and a high hit frequency while playing slot games. Accordingly, there is a continuing need to provide wagering games including new and exciting ways of providing players with entire symbol stacks during game play.